Bradley back on the attack

PEORIA — Bradley continued its surge in the Missouri Valley Conference on Sunday by coasting by Evansville 83-66 before 6,732 at Carver Arena.

The Braves (11-14, 6-6) have won five of their last seven and are locked in a four-way tie for third place in the MVC with Southern Illinois, Missouri State and Illinois State with six to play.

"We're playing our best basketball," said BU men's basketball coach Geno Ford. "In (the past) month we're 5-2 and the only team better than us is (unbeaten) Wichita. We thought this was a team early that had a lot of talent. It's taken us a long time to become decent. And now it's becoming a little more time to become good. We're not the same team that was suiting up in December, that's for sure."

The team that suited up Sunday in Bradley's annual Pink Game to recognize breast cancer survivors posted one of its best offensive games in three years. Only once in that span has a Bradley team scored 83 points in a Valley game.

The Braves shot 51 percent from the field, just the second time in league play this year they've made more than half their shots. Forty-four points came in the post and 20 more were scored on fast breaks. There were 14 assists to just nine turnovers.

"We were real unselfish," Ford said. "There were so many times we made the extra pass and it was always an accurate pass. Walt ran down one tough catch, but every other pass was crisp and on the money. It was the sharpest we are capable of being on offense."

Although Bradley forged a pair of 14-point leads in the first half, the Purple Aces (10-15, 3-9) were not about to go quietly into the late afternoon.

UE used a 9-2 burst to finish the first half and claw to within 39-32. Then top scorer D.J. Balentine opened the second half with a breakaway layup followed by a pair of free throws by Blake Simmons to cut the Bradley lead to 40-36 at 18:43.

Then came a 10-0 run that enabled the Braves to take double-digit control for good.

"It was more of a gradual avalanche than a quick one," Ford said. "It wasn't a fast 10-0 run. We kept getting stops and every time we got out in transition, they ignited the crowd, our bench and the guys on the floor."

Walt Lemon led the Braves with 25 points, 16 in the second half as the Braves raced to a 75-53 bulge at 6:37. Tyshon Pickett (20 points, seven rebounds) and Xzavier Taylor (career highs of 14 points and 11 rebounds) were an inside force.

"They were more aggressive and we were less aggressive (than the first meeting two weeks ago)," said UE coach Marty Simmons. "We certainly didn't give them a whole lot of resistance. We've had a hard time all year being able to sustain effort and concentration for long periods of time."

Bradley's most pleasant surprise was the play of Taylor, the freshman center whose minutes and numbers have been severely limited by foul trouble. But he didn't draw his first personal until 14:03 of the second half.

"A lot of times when I foul, it shows I'm tired," Taylor said. "Today, I blocked out being tired."

When public address announcer Paul Herzog emphasized it was Taylor's first foul, the crowd cheered and Taylor smiled broadly.

"The fouls he eliminated today were sealing the post and offensive fouls on blockouts," Ford said. "It takes a while (for young players) to harness their physicality."

Balentine led the Purple Aces with 23 points against a variety of BU defenses geared to stop him. The schemes included five different man-to-man defenders, zone and a diamond and one.

"We did a good job defending him and he did a good job getting 23," Ford said. "That's what good players do."

Bradley will find out just how much it has improved on Wednesday at home against second-place Indiana State. A month ago, BU dropped a 62-59 decision at Terre Haute.

"We're happy with the win," Pickett said. "But with Indiana State coming in, we have to be ready to keep winning games."

Dave Reynolds can be reached at 686-3210 or dreynolds@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @davereynolds2.